Where are the sparrows ?? Also a recipe for Banana Bread

The sudden appearance of twigs, old cotton balls and wool in our dining room puzzled us until we looked up. Mr and Mrs Sparrow had found a safe abode in the hustle bustle of the town to build their nest. Maa would sweep away the twigs, dry grass,cotton and feathers every day that would fall off the skylight......

Mr & Mrs Sparrow would fly out of the window every now and then and come back with tiny twigs and grasses in their beaks. It was a lot of hard work for these small birds .... yah making a house is no joke after all ! Be it humans or birds. I and my sister were pretty amused seeing the upcoming nest. After days of hard work the birds had put their nest together. We knew something was happening up there. Maa told us that Mr & Mrs Sparrow were busy decking up a nursery and making a comfortable home before their bundle of joy hatched.

We waited as much as the sparrows and one morning we heard the babies chirp. The chirping was sharp and shrill and would continue from dawn to dusk. The hungry babies kept their parents on the toes. The mother sparrow would fly out of the window and come back with worms in her beak to feed her babies while the father would guard their nest.This was a regular affair for the sparrow family.

I and my sister would pull up a chair and take turns to climb on it to have a glimpse of the babies. They looked ugly without feathers and had small red beaks. Maa warned us from getting close to their nest and we would obediently stare at the babies from a safe distance.

It was not very long when the baby sparrows developed tiny wings and had feathers on them. They looked so similar that t was difficult to differentiate one from the other. It was time for flying lessons. The 'sparrow parents' would teach the babies to fly.

Phurrrr Phurrrrr , the feathered family would fly all over our house ... or rather their house. They would fearlessly perch every where .... on the wash basin mirror, the sink, on the fridge and table top.The dining room fan was not switched on to keep the family and it's babies safe during their flying sessions.

One day they flew out of the window and never came back...... I stared out of the window and waited for days for them to return but alas !! The nest was empty and the birds were gone.I was sad but life took it's course and the memories of the sparrow family faded.

Today after many years I saw sparrows playing in a puddle of water outside my house. I remembered the sparrow family which once made our house their home. And these birds which were once so common have become a rare sight.

So where have the sparrows gone ???

Ingredients

All Purpose Flour - 2 cups

Powdered Sugar - 1 cup

Flax Seed - 1 tbsp

Crushed Walnuts - 1/2 cup

Baking Powder - 1 tsp

Salt - 1 tsp

Ripe Banana - 3

Vegetable Oil/ Canola Oil - 1/4 cup

Milk - to adjust consistency

Method of Preparation

1 Mash the bananas with a fork. Add sugar and oil to the mashed bananas and mix well.

2 Add all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl (Flour + Salt + Baking Powder + Flax seeds + crushed walnuts). Mix these ingredients well.

3 Add the mashed banana mixture to these dry ingredients and mix well to make a batter. If needed add little milk to adjust the consistency.

4 Grease a loaf pan with little oil and add the batter to it.

5 Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 - 60 minutes depending on the oven.

6 Insert a tooth pick or skewer to check if the bread is baked through.

7 Remove to a cooling rack and cut into slices once the bread is cool.

Note

Cutting the bread before cooling it may break it. So allow the bread to cool down before slicing it.